Die Lage am Stahlmarkt: Stahlindustrie im Sog der Industrierezession
German steel producers are caught by the drop of industry production, which caused demand for finished steel declining sharply. The consequences for steel production were mitigated by a significant drop of steel imports from third countries following the safeguard measures imposed by the European Commission. On the other hand, stocks of finished steel products were reduced significantly, which weighed on production. In 2020, the economic environment of the iron and steel sector will continue to be unfavorable. Production of industrial steel consumers is expected to decline further, and exports will not rise significantly. However, since the inventory cycle will phase out, the production of crude steel as well as of finished steel products will stop declining. Employment in the iron and steel sector, which was stabilized hitherto by a reduction of working hours, is set to decline then.
Döhrn, R. (2019), Die Lage am Stahlmarkt: Stahlindustrie im Sog der Industrierezession. RWI Konjunkturberichte, 70, 3, 53-62